Wine Advisor
Mouton Rothschild 2001
View analysis
Description
Formerly known as Château Brane-Mouton, it was in 1853 that Baron Nathaniel de Rothschild acquired the property located on the Left Bank in the Bordeaux region in the Médoc. From this date, the Château was renamed Château Mouton-Rothschild. Under the leadership of Baron Philippe de Rothschild, Mouton-Rothschild saw its reputation grow to become an emblem of the Pauillac appellation.
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
A soft, sumptuous nose of black cherries, cassis, redcurrants, kirsch and a touch of hot bricks. Well-defined with a certain warmth to it. Fleshier than the previous wine with blueberry, cherry, wild strawberry with a real succulent finish. Tasted October 2007.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
The 2001 Mouton Rothschild, a blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, and 2% Cabernet Franc from low yields of 28 hectoliters per hectare, was quite closed and nearly impenetrable when I tasted it in 2003. It exhibits a dense ruby/purple color and a hint of new saddle leather intermixed with espresso, black currant liqueur, and Asian spices. The wine is dense on the attack, but excruciatingly tannic and backward, with medium to full body and a certain austerity/angularity in the finish. As I indicated last year, this wine needs to flesh out for it to merit a higher score. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2035.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted blind at Bordeaux Index’s 10-Year On horizontal. This has another outstanding bouquet with notes of blackberry, wild hedgerow, graphite and a touch of orange peel. Great delineation and vigour, a little more generous than Lafite that overtakes after an hour in bottle. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, superb acidity, great depth but perhaps just missing the persistency and vigour of the Lafite. Great mineralite on the tobacco and autumn leaf-finish. Tasted March 2011.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted blind at the IMW 2001 horizontal. A very attractive nose of blackberry, pencil lead and tobacco, very classic in style. The palate is layered with sweet blackberry, cherry and cassis, very pure and voluptuous. Good acidity with a floral, violet mid-palate and a touch of cooked meats on the finish. Fine. Tasted November 2005.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
The 2001 Mouton is a blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, and 2% Cabernet Franc produced from small yields of 28 hectoliters per hectare (66% of the production made it into the wine). The entire Cabernet Sauvignon crop was harvested between October 8-10. While the 2001 does not possess the charm or finesse of the 1999, or the massive power and body of the virtually perfect 2000, it possesses forward, evolved aromatics consisting of espresso, creme de cassis, Asian spice, licorice, and toasty oak. Low acid and high tannin result in an austere finish. It will need to flesh out to justify a 93 or better score. For now, it is dominated by its Cabernet Sauvignon. Additional fat should emerge as the wine evolves in the barrel. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2025.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at the French Embassy in London. Juxtaposed against Lafite ’01, this Mouton loses a few points on the nose that has a little more intensity but not the same level of precision and clarity. Lifted blackberry, autumn leaf, cedar and a touch of fresh tobacco, the mintiness enhanced by continued aeration. The palate is very tight and slightly pinched at the moment, the tannins a little harder and less fine than Lafite, the finish slightly chalky and foursquare in texture. Personally, I prefer the 2002 to the previous year, but it is still a decent, mid-weight Pauillac that would show better with cuisine. Drink 2013-2025. Tasted November 2010.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
A blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, and 2% Cabernet Franc, the opaque purple-colored, chunky 2001 Mouton-Rothschild does not possess the finesse and stature often achieved by this first-growth. It offers a tell-tale cassis-scented nose, and a monolithic, medium to full-bodied style with relatively high, austere tannin in the finish (a characteristics I also noticed in cask). A dry, angular, backward effort for the vintage, it should be forgotten for at least a decade. Let’s hope the fruit continues to expand and sweeten, but that’s no sure thing. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2025+.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2001 Mouton-Rothschild contains 20% vin de presse and 12.6° alcohol. It has a vibrant, captivating bouquet that explodes from the glass with precocious black cherries, sous-bois, mint and a touch of Seville oranges, displaying precision and class. The medium-bodied palate shows good density and offers sappy black fruit, white pepper and just a touch of tobacco. Quite muscular for a 2001, and perhaps missing the clarity and pixelation that the next winemaker, Philippe Dhalluin, subsequently imparted. This is a thoroughly enjoyable Mouton-Rothschild, even if it is not the same pedigree as recent vintages.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Good full ruby. High-pitched aromas of blackberry, mint and minerals. Juicy but quite tightly wound today; much more austere than the comparatively pliant Clerc-Milon-not to mention firmer and less fleshy than it appeared from barrel a year ago. Juicy acidity contributes to the impression of structure. Unlike most 2001s, this seems already to have gone into a shell. This penetrating, mostly cabernet sauvignon (86%) Mouton will need at least a decade of bottle aging.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Good medium ruby. Aromas of ripe and raw currant, minerals, roast coffee, tobacco and roasted oak. Sweet, lush and broad, with lovely pliancy. Dense, seamless and shapely wine, in a rather supple style compared to the 2002. Doesn't offer that wine's lift or inner-mouth complexity, but this has lovely balance. The tannins are broad and ripe, but this wine should nonetheless repay eight to ten years of cellaring.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Saturated ruby. Aromas of blackcurrant, blackberry, camphor, licorice, bitter chocolate and mint. Firm and rather backward, dominated by its structure today and showing limited flesh and sweetness. Shows a slightly green cabernet component. Finishes tannic and clenched, with a torrefaction note of roast coffee. This sample already includes 20% press wine.
About the Producer
Chateau Mouton Rothschild is located in the Pauillac appellation in the Medoc of Bordeaux, France. In the 1855 classification, it shares the distinction of being a First Growth with Chateau Lafite Rothschild, Chateau Latour, Chateau Margaux and Chateau Haut-Brion. Mouton Rothschild has adopted a modern approach to winery management, employing a viticulturalist to oversee the vineyards. From the cultivation of the grapes to the pruning of the vines, from the tracking of the ripening of the grapes to the manual harvesting, everything is done to perfection. Today, Château Mouton has 90 hectares of vineyards, most of which are located on a hill called "Plateau de Mouton", at an altitude of 27 meters. The soil is deep gravel, with good drainage and heat storage, which allows the grapes to ripen slowly. The vineyard is planted with 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, with a planting density of approximately 10,000 vines/ha and an average vine age of 44 years. The vineyard also contains 7 hectares of excellent plots for the production of high quality white wines, with 56% Sauvignon Blanc, 43% Semillon and 1% Muscadelle, planted at a density of 9,000 vines per hectare. During the harvest season, the grapes are picked and sorted by hand, and the carefully selected grapes are placed in fermentation vats by gravity alone through moving vats. As a result, the grapes are not subjected to any unnatural pressure or restraint and remain in their natural, pure state from the time they are harvested until they enter the fermentation vats. At the end of fermentation, the wine is transferred to new oak barrels to mature for about 20 months. In 2012, Mouton Rothschild's new winery, which combines traditional techniques with modern technology, was inaugurated. It is divided into two floors, connected by metal columns. The interior is equipped with oak barrels and stainless steel tanks of different sizes, which correspond to the different plots and varieties of the vineyard, in order to achieve a more optimal winemaking blend. Chateau Mouton Rothschild, Pauillac, France is the main wine of the estate and accounts for half of the total production. It has been praised by many critics and wine lovers for its beautiful, elegant and unique style, which is in harmony with the terroir of the region, and its artistic design of the label. In addition to the main label, the winery also has Le Petit Mouton de Mouton Rothschild, Pauillac, France (1993) and Aile d'Argent Blanc du Mouton (1991). Chateau Mouton Rothschild, Bordeaux, France). The Petit Mouton Rothschild is made from the younger vines on the estate and is harvested, vinified and bottled on the same basis as the full-length wine. The wine quickly gained a foothold in the market and was very well received. The Silver Wings dry white wine is rich, complex and elegant, and although its production is scarce, it is quickly becoming a symbol of Bordeaux's premium white wines and a favorite among wine enthusiasts.
1947(2)1948(1)1950(2)1951(1)1952(1)1953(1)1954(1)1955(2)1956(1)1957(3)1958(2)1959(1)1960(1)1962(1)1963(1)1964(2)1965(1)1966(1)1967(1)1968(2)1969(2)1970(1)1971(2)1972(1)1973(3)1974(1)1975(2)1976(1)1977(2)1978(1)1979(3)1980(1)1981(1)1982(8)1983(2)1984(5)1985(5)1986(12)1987(5)1988(8)1989(8)1990(1)1991(5)1992(9)1993(6)1994(8)1995(12)1996(16)1997(6)1998(15)1999(13)2000(21)
Package Size
